The Christiana Mall
by Demonicor666
Summary: It's Steven's birthday, so he has the special choice of picking where he wants to spend the day. And he gets to spend it with Ruby and Sapphire. They all agree on heading out of Beach City to go to the Christiana Mall. Things are going pretty great so far, but can it stay that way? Thanks to Ruby's sudden fury of anger from a stupid mistake, they must escape the mall alive.
1. Chapter 1

"Okay guys, we gotta stick together...! We could get lost here, well, separated," Steven said, glancing back at the other two Gems.

Ruby sighed, crossing her arms and looking around the crowded area. "You said there's a food court?" she asked, and the boy nodded happily.

"Yeah, definitely! We can eat there later!" he replied.

"Which shop do you wish to visit first, Steven?" Sapphire asked calmly, and the boy took a moment to think.

"Oh, how about the video game store! I don't think I'll buy anything, but games are really cool to look at! Or the bookstore! Yeah, let's go to the bookstore first!" Steven stated, beginning to head forward and waving his hand for them to follow. Ruby and Sapphire quickly followed after him.

 _'I better not get lost; there's too much people here. Why did there have to be so much people here on Steven's birthday?'_ Ruby thought uneasily, glaring back at the people who gave her weird looks as they passed by, as if confused at her short height.

"Stop worrying, Ruby," Sapphire reminded, and Ruby rolled her eyes. Stupid future vision and Sapphire knowing what she was about to complain about.

"We've never really gone out of Beach City before...why couldn't Steven just pick somewhere there?" Ruby began, and Sapphire glanced at her before turning to watch Steven run into a store called _'Barnes and Nobles'_ , a name which she didn't really understand.

"Just have fun Ruby, and try to act like you're enjoying yourself when Steven is near."

"Fine..." Ruby sighed, and the two of them entered the store, a cold breeze of fresh air swishing past them as they did so.

They passed the register counter, and there was a young woman there, who caught a glimpse of them. Ruby caught the surprised look on her face, to which she rolled her eyes and continued to keep up with Sapphire.

Steven rushed up to the kid section of the books, searching for books appropriate for his age. He smiled up at all the new colorful books. So many to read! Yet he likes the good books, not boring ones. There were books he never understood. Slowly walking to the left beside the shelf as he observed each book cover, he hadn't realized he had wandered too far off to the adult section of the store. Sapphire glanced over to Ruby for a quick moment before watching Steven, her as well not noticing he was in the adult section. She walked up to him as he picked up a book, turning it over to see the cover, which looked really weird.

"What...? Hey Sapphire, why are they naked?" the boy asked as Sapphire reached his side, to which she glanced down at the book he was holding. Gasping, she quickly grabbed it from out of his hands and stepped back, hiding the book.

"It's not important," she quickly said, heading around him and putting the book back. She quickly led Steven back to the kid's section.

Ruby mulled about the children's section, looking as miserable as ever until Steven caught her gaze. She immediately put on a wide smile, waving to him as he passed, but as soon as he was out of sight, she huffed and continued to scowl at the large shelves in front of her. She hated being upset during Steven's birthday, but something was just setting her in a terrible mood. Sniffing, she picked up one of the books and quickly flipped through it. Groaning as she didn't understand most of it, Ruby placed it back on the shelf and pricked her head as Sapphire headed up to her.

"Keep an eye on him Ruby, he wants to spend time with you...and keep him out of the adult section, he's too young for that," Sapphire said, pausing as she noted Ruby's mood. "Don't get upset, okay...?" she reminded, and Ruby blinked, glancing away.

"Yeah yeah, I know..." Ruby breathed, turning back around as Sapphire nodded and headed away to wherever she was going to. Not that it was important, Ruby supposed.

"Ruby, Ruby!" Steven called, rushing up to the red Gem, a book in his hands. She turned around, facing him as he neared up.

"Yeah Steven?" she answered, blinking as he held a book up so she could see the cover, at the same time stepping up next to her side.

"Which pony do you like the most? I like that one!" Steven stated happily, pointing at the black, tall pony, with a long horn on top of its head and wings on its back. It seemed to be wearing armor of some sort, and there was purple glitter rising from the top of its body, surrounding it.

"Oh-uh..." Ruby started quickly, squinting her eyes as she scanned the different animals on the cover.

"Those three look cool," she finally said, pointing up near the title words, gesturing to the three Siren creatures that illuminated three different colors.

"Ohhhh the Sirens! Nice!" Steven said, holding the book down. "I read the backstory thing and...their names are..." he quickly opened the book, looking inside it. "Adagio is the yellow one, Aria is the purple one, and Sonata is the blue one!" Steven informed. He quickly turned around and headed back down the aisle, placing the book back. "I'll try to get that book next time! It looks cool, though!" he said happily.

"Yep..." Ruby replied, watching him run around to the other side. Following him, Ruby blinked as he tried reaching up to a higher shelf, glancing at her for a moment.

"Here, let me help..." she started, stepping up to him and leaning down, allowing him to climb up onto her shoulders to get what he wanted. Once he stepped back down, she tried looking over his shoulder to see what it was. However, before she got to look, Ruby's head pricked as she heard quiet laughter coming from somewhere. Who was that-were they laughing at her?! Quickly stepping away from Steven, Ruby headed down the aisle, glaring at all the people who continued to look at her strangely. Passing the corner, she huffed as she didn't see anyone, and turned to go back to Steven, blinking as she realized he was gone.

"Steven?" she called some what quietly, rushing up to the end of the hall which was halted by a wall, and she turned the corner there. She sighed in relief as she spotted him there, observing the book he had in his hands. The boy glanced up as he noticed her, and he joyfully went up to her.

"Look! There's this villain in the book who can shape shift, just like you and the others!" he said, handing her the book. Ruby tilted her head, opening the book, noting the colorful pictures that displayed the villain's shape shifting.

"Wow," Ruby said, giving it back him. "That's neat," she finished.

"Yep!" Steven said, continuing to read the back cover information. Ruby suddenly paused as she heard more giggling, this time coming from behind her. She whipped around, to which the giggling abruptly stopped.

"Hey-who's there?!" she demanded, walking forward and passing a few more aisles. She froze as she saw three kids there. Well, they didn't look like kids, actually...more or so teenagers.

"What? Can't mind your own business?" the teen in the red shirt said, glaring down at the red Gem. The other two teens were wearing a green and yellow shirt, who looked just as annoyed.

Ruby blinked in surprise, narrowing her eyes at them. "EXCUSE me?! How about YOU mind your own business?! I can hear you laughing at me from all the way over there!" Ruby deadpanned, clenching her fists in mild annoyance.

"Listen, midget. You don't tell us what to do. Especially when we're stronger and obviously bigger than you," the teen in the yellow shirt snapped back, taking a step forward, causing Ruby to jump back.

"Wanna bet?!" Ruby hissed, gritting her teeth angrily.

All three teenagers suddenly began to laugh, glancing at each other.

"There's nothing to bet, stupid! Can't you see, we are CLEARLY stronger, and CLEARLY bigger. You blind?" the teenager in the green shirt pointed out.

Ruby blinked, her rage increasing. "Oh ho ho, you don't know who you're messing with. There's so much to bet. I am clearly stronger and bigger than you," Ruby growled, about to explode.

"Hah, yeah right. That boy you're with over there said you can shape shift. What a lie! Prove it," the teen in the red shirt seethed.

That's it. She was _DONE_!

"Oh, I _WILL_ PROVE IT! I WILL _DEFINITELY_ PROVE IT!" Ruby suddenly screeched, taking a step back as she stomped on the floor. Her body suddenly flashed white, her form zapping as it grew bigger and bigger, until her back hit the ceiling. The teens gasped in shock and horror, stumbling back and staring wide eyed up at the creature now standing there, glaring down at them in great anger. Ruby hissed, baring her teeth, flicking her tail as smoke puffed out of her nostrils, narrowing her eyes into slits.

"You were saying?! I _**CAN**_ _SHAPE SHIFT_ , I can be as _**BIGGER**_ as you three idiots will _EVER_ be, and I am _**STRONGER**_ than you!" she roared out, taking a stomp forward, to which the three teens screamed out in terror, whipping around and fleeing the store.

"YEAH, THAT'S RIGHT!" Ruby growled, flexing her claws as she sat back, her head higher than the book shelves. It took her a moment to notice all the horrified looks she received, to which she blinked widening eyes, flinching back a bit. She looked up at the surveillance camera, which was aimed directly at her. She wasn't supposed to reveal her powers out here, and she just did.

 _Crap._


	2. Chapter 2

Ruby gulped, fear coursing through her body. She messed up. Big time.

Almost immediately everyone began screaming, dropping what they were holding and bolting for the store exit.

The red dragon blinked widening eyes in surprise as she heard a voice call up to her from below.

"Ruby…!" Sapphire called quickly in a hushed tone, looking up at her fusion partner.

Grumbling, Ruby shape shifted back into her original form, blinking as she saw the look on the other Gem's face. She was definitely in trouble…

"I can explain-"

"No explanations, Ruby! You needed to follow one simple rule and you broke it," Sapphire stated firmly, crossing her arms and shaking her head. "We need to get out of the mall. Now." She gestured for the other Gem to follow, and she rushed up to the end of the aisle, spotting Steven, who looked confused as ever.

"Sapphire, what's happening?" he asked, gasping a bit as she grabbed his hand and began to lead him to the store exit, Ruby following behind them. "Why are we running?! Why are we leaving?!" Steven asked again, receiving a side glance from the blue Gem.

"I'll explain later, Steven. Right now, we need to leave the mall…" Sapphire steadily said, noting all the scared and weird looks they were getting.

The people who were in the food court didn't see Ruby's shape shift, but some probably have seen it in time due to the screams that had come from the book store. But it didn't help at all that the people who saw Ruby's shape shift were telling others to run away from them, which was unfortunately working.

"Why is everyone screaming and running? Is there a monster?!" Steven questioned once again, extremely confused, huffing when he received no answer once again. He gasped when he saw a couple of security guards appear from the hall several feet away, who had guns in their hands. Or at least, what _looked_ like guns.

"Um-guys…! They have guns! Scary looking guns!" Steven breathed shakily, taking a small step back. He froze in terror as they aimed it at them.

Ruby blinked, stepping in front of them and shape shifting into the same dragon from before, turning around to the side and spreading her right wing, bending it to block the shots. She'll use her wing to protect them from the bullets.

She flinched back as she heard 'slingshots' echoing throughout the air, and yelped slightly as she felt sharp stings peirce against the surface of her wing.

What-?! That didn't sound or feel like bullet shots…!

Ruby flattened out her wing, freezing in terror once she saw what was sticking out of her skin.

Tranquilizer Darts.

She whipped her head around to glance at Sapphire and Steven. "Guys-go!" she said, shaking her head dizzily, clutching her head in slight pain.

Sapphire stepped back, scanning through all the outcomes with her future vision. There was only two paths that led to them escaping, but she chose the most reasonable and logical one. She shape shifted into a dragon herself, almost a bit bigger than her fusion partner.

"Ruby, shape shift back into your regular form," she commanded, reaching forward and gently picking Steven up. Ruby did as she was told, stumbling back as she began to lose consciousness, being picked up as well.

Then, Sapphire took in a deep breath.

Then exhaled.

Bursts of steaming hot fire blasted out of her jaws, burning the incoming darts and causing the security guards to back away, beginning to flee and run down the hall. Spreading her wings, she took to the air, flying down the hall and turning the corner there, quickening her pace as she spotted the exit. The only problem was that she was too big to fit through those small doors.

She frantically glanced around, scanning her options. Glancing up, she noticed the large windows. And luckily, they were wide open.

Sapphire swiveled upwards, tucking her wings in as she carefully but swiftly passed through the window, the warm outside air meeting her scales.

Alright, now to get out of here…

"Uh-Sapphire…! If we're trying to hide and if everyone freaks out from seeing a dragon in the sky, aren't the citizens around the neighborhood going to see you?" Steven called from below, placing his hands on her talons, feeling its smooth surface as he looked up.

He was right. If Sapphire was going to leave the town like _this_ , as a dragon, she might as well be followed. And she didn't want that. They couldn't risk getting killed just because of their powers. They weren't dangerous, but everyone else thinks they _are_ dangerous, which would result in cops or animal capturers arriving to the scene.

Shaking her head, she flapped her wings and dove forward, zooming toward the forest that wasn't too far away; she could see it in the far distance.

Steven swallowed, his gaze falling on the mall, that was beginning to grow smaller and smaller as they moved away from it. _I didn't even get to buy anything…_ he thought sadly, turning his head to look at Ruby, who was unconscious. But he still didn't know why they had to leave the mall and why they were being attacked. They didn't even do anything wrong! At least, that's what he thought.

In a few long moments, they had reached the forest, and Sapphire ducked down, beating her wings for a few moments before landing heavily onto the ground, softly placing Ruby and Steven on the ground in front of her before shape shifting back into her original form. She stepped forward, bending down next to Ruby's side, checking to see if she was alright. There were two of the darts sticking out of her back side, and Steven watched as she carefully removed them.

"Sapphire…? Is Ruby going to be okay?" the boy asked worriedly, holding his hands together while he waited. He received a nod in reply.

"Yes. She is just asleep. She'll wake up soon. Hopefully…"

Tranquilizer Darts were only intended for animals, not humans. Since Ruby is a _Gem_ , Sapphire didn't know if the symptoms would even wear off at all. Not even her future vision could predict the most probable outcome. She just hoped she'll wake up as soon as possible and be okay…

"Oh, alright… And why are we here in a forest? Why did we leave? And why did those people try attacking us for no reason?" Steven questioned, observing the trees nervously. It didn't seem safe here…

"Ruby used her powers in public. Since we aren't in Beach City, the people there reacted differently. They don't know anything about real 'strange magic', as others would call it," Sapphire replied, standing up and turning around.

"Oh…" Steven murmured, taking a step forward. "So….are we gonna go home?"

"Unfortunately, yes Steven. Sorry today didn't go as planned," Sapphire apologized, glancing ahead, noting the path that led somewhere. Maybe they could take that route to go back home. She can figure it out when they leave the forest. The only goal at the moment was to stay unseen.

"That's okay. At least I got to see two dragons today and I flew!" the boy said with a grin.

"We'll make it up to you somehow. Perhaps there'll be more dragons involved," Sapphire said with a small smile, to which the boy gasped happily.

"Really? YAY!" Steven breathed excitedly.

However, he paused as he heard a strange noise come from the bushes, and he turned around, blinking as he saw nothing. "Did you hear that?" he said quietly, silencing himself so he could listen.

The blue Gem stilled as well, swearing that she had heard something too.

Another sound suddenly came, the leaves rustling and swishing as it sounded.

Out of the blue, something hard _clanked_ to the ground, landing in the middle between the three Gems. Suddenly, it exploded, releasing a huge wave of white gas, rising up into the air and engulfing the entire area.

Steven yelped, beginning to roughly cough, a burning sensation pulsing inside his chest as he struggled to breathe. His vision began to blur horribly; to the point where he could barely see anything, only blobs of whatever was in front of him. He couldn't see Sapphire-where was she?! He opened his mouth, attempting to speak, but found that he couldn't form words-it was hard to do so. He lost his balance and fell back, wheezing weakly as tears formed in his eyes as he shook in fear. His eyes widened as a black figure suddenly stepped up into his vision, yellow gleaming eyes staring straight ahead into his gaze. A wicked smile formed upon its face, shaking a bit, as if laughing.

It was the last thing Steven saw before he blacked out into dark emptiness.


End file.
